More than 100 cats may soon be up for adoption in Merced after authorities there found them in a U-Haul truck belonging to a Long Beach woman.
In an update posted on Facebook this week, the Merced County Sheriff’s Office said that after a seizure hearing concluded this week, 106 cats seized from a vehicle last Sunday were placed on a 14-day hold.
After that hold, the cats must also be cleared by veterinarians at the Merced County Animal Shelter before they can be adopted.
A spokesperson with the Sheriff’s Office said Friday there is no guarantee the cats will be cleared within or immediately after the two-week period. Some may not be physically fit enough for adoption, she added.
Any updates on the cats will be posted on the shelter’s website.
The cats were discovered Sunday by sheriff deputies during a welfare check at a Taco Bell parking lot in Santa Nella, Calif.
Officers there approached a U-Haul van and saw “at least 20 cats in distress” from the front windshield. Opening the vehicle, animal control officers discovered 106 “extremely emaciated cats” without food or water, and many of which were stuffed in cardboard boxes. Twenty-eight cats were found dead, according to the sheriff’s office.
The woman, 69-year-old Jeannie Maxon, was charged with 93 counts of animal cruelty and booked into Merced County Jail.